Podcast: Play in new window
We have been working on the concept for this podcast for months. We hope you like our first beta episode. Please leave your comments.
We hope to cover news, information and insights that are missed by other news and entertainment podcasts.
The show is recorded with minimal pre-show discussion to keep the conversation fresh and unrehearsed.
photo credit: romana klee
OK, It’s been two weeks since my laptops were stolen, but I still haven’t completely gotten over it. What makes it slightly worse, is that I had just setup a Mac to take over as my primary desktop computer.
The Mac didn’t actually make the problem worse, but in order to set up the Mac, I had to move my PC to another desk. I didn’t get rid of it altogether.
I was fully prepared to use my Mac for all of my day-to-day functions but turn to my laptop around the house for email, Internet and other projects. I didn’t realize how much I had depended on my laptop over the past few weeks until they weren’t there anymore.
I have have been putting most of my computer time into making my life universal and compatible with all formats. I use Zoho.com for my document creation, NVU for my web editor, Firefox as my browser, Gimp and Picasa for photos and Thunderbird for my Mac and Ubuntu email app. I still use Outlook on the PC but I can’t remember why.
In the past month as I have been using my Mac almost exclusively as my home computer, I have found that it is a habit forming device. Concepts that are difficult concepts on a PC, like keyboard shortcuts and file management, are almost intuitive on the Mac.
When I tell people that I am migrating away from Windows in my personal life, I always get the same response, “Why?” They ask the question with an almost betrayed tone in their voice as though I have told them that I am leaving my wife.
I explain how easy the transition was and how I don’t have to mess with antivirus, spyware. disk cleanup and other utility functions that almost exclusively belong to the PC.
Their next thought is, “Maybe I should do that.”
I am not on a mission to turn people to Mac, but when faced with the option of moving to Vista or moving to Mac, I can’t form much of an intelligent argument for going with Microsoft.
Very soon, the only Windows machine I will be using on a regular basis in my personal life will be a MacBook with Vista loaded as an alternate OS. I still need Windows for when I am teaching my Basic Computer classes via the projector. Other than that, I can’t see myself using Windows personally for any practical reasons.
I have becoming fluent in speaking the language of Windows, I would like to one day speak, just as fluently in Mac, Linux, Google and Windows Mobile. I still don’t want to speak geek, I just call it talking digital.
I have had to fight back tears of joy as I put the newsletter together. At times I could barely read what was on my screen. The anticipation for changes in my life has probably lead to many misspellings and errors, but you may not notice as those errors probably still fall within our guaranteed 78 percent accuracy range.
I have looked forward to this day for almost a year – and it finally has come.
Early this year, Microsoft released Windows Vista. I knew that it wouldn’t be great, but as a computer guy, I felt compelled to use it so that I would understand how too work on it.
I didn’t want to commit my desktop to it just in case there were problems. So, I put it on my Averatec laptop with 1 gig of RAM, a dual core AMD Turion X64 and 100 gig hard drive. It seemed powerful enough.
Many Averatecs didn’t come with recovery CDs, but I didn’t see a problem with erasing Windows XP to make room for Vista.
It only took a few moments of using Windows Vista to realize how much slower my computer had become. The bootup time had more than doubled and I would get all shake y as I waited for it to shut down.
Programs opened slowly. I was sometimes able to connect to a wireless connection, yet I was not able to actually browse the web on networks that I knew were open because the XP systems right beside me were working fine.
Then two weeks ago Rick showed me something that would change my life. Averatec had posted Windows XP recovery disks for my laptop. I wasted no time and for $20, I ordered the disks.
Today, my disks arrived in the mail. I haven’t installed them yet because I can’t bring myself to stop hugging and kissing them. I should get to bed early tonight, but I feel like a kid on Christmas. I don’t know if I can wait any longer. I must install XP back on my laptop and make it feel loved again.
Thank you Averatec. Thank you for giving me back my Windows XP.